About the Health Professions Review Board

Our Vision

To
promote transparent, objective, impartial and fair administrative processes and decision-making by the regulated health professions in British Columbia that protects the public interest and engenders public confidence in the provincial health care system.

Our Missions

To provide the public with independent, transparent and respectful review and
early resolution processes that determine or resolve the health professions issues under review in an unbiased, timely and cost-effective manner.

To evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of the review and dispute resolution processes of the self-governing colleges and, where warranted, recommend improvements.

The Review Board will achieve these missions by:

ensuring fairness and transparency in the processes of the Review Board,

reviewing all applications for review to determine whether there is a potential for
early resolution,

reviewing each case in accordance with the rules of natural justice and procedural fairness,

ensuring each case is evaluated and determined on its individual merits,

simplifying the policies and administrative procedures used to ensure access to the review process by all parties,

providing all parties to a review with access to clear and understandable procedural information,

providing public access to the Review Board’s decisions,

educating Review Board members on the principles of administrative law, dispute resolution and the relevant legislation,

providing the research, legal and administrative support required for the Review Board members to make fair and reasoned orders and decisions,

developing effective and efficient registry, case management, resolution and research systems to support the
above activities, and

consulting with colleges, registrants, members of health profession associations and any other persons
where necessary or appropriate.

Our Mandate

The Review Board is an independent, quasi-judicial, administrative tribunal established under Part 4.2 of the Health Professions Act. The Review Board has the following powers and duties under section 50.53 of the Act:

to review certain registration decisions of a college of a designated health profession,

to review the failure, by the inquiry committee of a college, to dispose of a complaint or an investigation within the time required,

to review certain dispositions of complaints made by the inquiry committee of a college, and

to develop and publish guidelines and recommendations for the purpose of assisting colleges to establish and employ registration, inquiry and discipline procedures that are transparent, objective, impartial and fair.

After a review of a registration decision or a disposition of a complaint made by the inquiry committee, the Review Board may make an order either:

confirming the registration decision or disposition of the inquiry committee,

directing the registration or inquiry committee to make a decision or disposition that could have been made by the registration committee or the inquiry committee in the matter, or

send the matter back to the registration or inquiry committee for reconsideration with directions.